Thanksgiving in New Mexico

Over a week late, so more than one photo of our annual Thanksgiving in Santa Fe....

Gals' Night In

I spent a fantastic evening last weekend with two of my favorite people. I will call them Nanny Goat and Wild Girl. These are not really pseudonyms because, well, this really is what I call them, no joke. Since it was Wild's Birthday it was necessary to make a Wild Rumpus at Nanny Goat's house until 2:30 AM. The Wild Rumpus consisted of lying around drinking champagne, talking and laughing our asses off until it was too late to go out to a restaurant so we were obliged to order takeout at 11:00 PM. Italian, of course. Here are just a few reasons why I love the gals:

They both have loud laughs.

They are both very creative and have a great sense of style.

They are both opinionated as hell and not afraid to speak their minds.

We call eachother "Duuude!"

One of them quacks like a duck.

The other one squeaks.

They are both beautiful.

They are both brilliant and well-read.

They can both dance up a storm.

We decided that each of us has at least one excellent physical attribute that would make a combination of all three of us the "perfect woman" (No I am NOT telling...)

We have taken some great road trips together.

We have had some good cries together.

They make me laugh until I....

I have known them for 24 years. That's along time, people.

There is much much more of course, but there is no way I'm sharing it on the Internet. That's another thing - these women know how to Keep A Secret.


Thanks WG and NG!!

Love, Sequoia (aka Trunkasaur)

Look Up

Tired and overworked but here I am. This is the time of year to remind yourself to look up and out of yourself and away from your spinning wheels. There is always something to see...

Watch with glittering eyes
the whole world around you
because the greatest secrets
are always hidden
in the most unlikely places.

-Roald Dahl

Walk

I love to walk, usually at a good clip. When I am alone I bring my i-pod, because the music can take me away, get my mind and emotions moving to other places, and my legs pump faster. I like the bright air and the immediacy of a morning walk on the road by the beach, the smell of the ocean, gasoline and coffee.

I walk the sidewalks of my neighborhood past familiar houses and gardens; seeing details I never notice from a car – a plastic playhouse in a driveway with Godzilla peering out of the window, a forgotten newspaper on the front steps nestled in a recent drop of deep red fall leaves. I like to feel my muscles working, doing what they are supposed to do in tandem with my heart. An evening walk offers glimpses into secret worlds behind lit windows at twilight; a head bent over at a desk doing homework, the muffled clatter of dinner dishes, the blue glow of a television in an upstairs window.

I love to walk with a friend. This can be better than sharing a cup of coffee or a cocktail or a meal. Maybe it’s the simultaneous flow of conversation and blood in the veins. There is something about the constant movement, filling your lungs with fresh air, and not even looking at each other that often – that brings out the best and deepest thoughts and laughter. When you are not fidgeting with napkins or wine glasses or food preparation and consumption – everything is stripped away. A pure state of communication emerges, where the absurdly funny anecdote, the fight with your kid, the e-mail from an old love or heartache over an ailing parent can surface and be released, without judgment and with a fresh energy that lightens the burden. It is the physicality of it. You walk it out. And when you are finished and home, you are maybe a little sore and sweaty and windblown, but calmed inside. Ready for whatever comes next.